


The End of the River

by Starkad



Category: Batman (Comics), Nightwing (Comics)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, F/M, rated for later chapters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-18
Updated: 2020-06-05
Packaged: 2021-03-01 16:47:32
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,676
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23720326
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Starkad/pseuds/Starkad
Summary: Batman fantasy AU, Dick Grayson centric.
Relationships: Barbara Gordon & Dick Grayson, Barbara Gordon/Dick Grayson, Dick Grayson & Bruce Wayne, Stephanie Brown & Dick Grayson, Stephanie Brown & Tim Drake, Stephanie Brown/Tim Drake, Tim Drake & Dick Grayson
Comments: 4
Kudos: 19





	1. Man without a home.

**Author's Note:**

> I had this idea for a while but was hesitant to make it a batman AU. In my planning the plot could pretty much stand without batman stuff, but ultimately I felt like using characters I was familiar with rather than trying to make my own. If you have any advise, please tell me, all(most) criticism is appreciated.

The sun hung low overhead as Richard rode steadily onward. He rode tall in the saddle, barely ever using the reins. His horse was well trained and he could steer easy enough with his legs. He wore a thick black jacket with a blue crest emblazoned on the front, very closely resembling an eagle. Across his back, coming a little above his shoulders were a pair of long and thin steel sticks.

He barely noticed his surroundings, as his mind was still racing. Since the destruction of Blüdhaven, he had been a knight without a home. Without a city to protect. Without purpose. 

He had found himself wandering along the countryside, helping where he could. He went where the road took him, but he always avoided Gotham. He had no desire to see Bruce again, not now, not after everything. He sometimes missed Alfred and the town itself, and though he wouldn’t admit it, he missed Bruce deeply.

For a long time Bruce had been his friend, ally, and confident. He was damn near a father to him, even while he always remembered his real father. From the age of 9 Bruce had taught him everything he knew. He had spent years training with Bruce. His life resolved around Bruce, helping him make the city of Gotham a little safer for its citizens. He desperately wanted Bruce to be proud of him. He strived for perfection constantly for Bruce. 

Yet Bruce was always the same. Cold and unyielding, unduly afraid emotion. Bruce always wanted more, even when it meant trying to improve things that were perfect, or close enough. Richard had always tried damndest to meet Bruce’s expectations, and Bruce just raised the bar ever higher. 

As he grew older, so did his need for independence. He chafed constantly under Bruce’s unfeeling and distant tutelage. Barbara had joined their mission by then, and she and Richard quickly became the best of friends. 

He grew tremendously in those years. He had made friends and allies among other people who were in their line of work. He had more people his age. He grew happier, but his relationship with Bruce was still souring. He was never good enough. Bruce found flaws in everything. Be faster, Be stronger, Be smarter, Be better. 

Eventually, the tension proved to be too much for Richard and Bruce. They had an explosive argument. Richard had certainly said things he hadn’t meant, and sometimes he missed home terribly, but he never felt any regret. He needed to be his own man, and that meant severing ties with bruce. So he left. Left Gotham. Left Alfred. Left Barbara. Left Bruce

He was scarcely gone when Bruce had found himself another Boy Wonder. Jason and Richard had never had the best relationship. The person he was really angry at was Bruce, but it was often hard to not take his anger out on Jason. His replacement.

He found himself a new city to protect. Blüdhaven. It was in some ways a worse city then Gotham. There were no knights dedicated to protecting it, shining or dark. It was a tough city, but it had been his home. And now it was nothing.

He rarely returned to Gotham. When he did, he found Bruce always the same. Nothing had changed in him, even after Richard left and he got himself a new squire. But nothing lasts forever. 

Jason died. Beaten to death by a madman. When Richard heard, he raced back to Gotham. Bruce was a wreck. It surprised Richard how much Bruce cared. Together Bruce and Richard defeated the madman, and imprisoned him in a far away mountain prison. Richard had not seen Bruce since.

“Help!”

A sudden cry for assistance startled Richard out of his reverie. He urged his horse into a gallop towards the source of the sound. Summiting a small hill, he gazed down on the scene before him. 

A boy stood by a dead horse. 3 men with various weapons circled loosely around him. The boy couldn’t have been much more than 16 or 17 years of age. He swung a wooden stick around him, trying in vain to keep the men at bay.

The men certainly seemed to be bandits. Their weapons were mostly improvised, scythes and hastily made clubs. As the men started to close in, Richard spurred his horse forward. With a shout, he descended into the fray. As he drew near, he vaulted off his horse. No need to endanger his horse, these men clearly were not above slaying an animal.

He quickly drew his Escrima sticks, knocking the club from the nearest bandit’s hand with a swift blow to the knuckles. The other 2 eyed him carefully for a moment before beating a swift retreat. 

“You alright?” Richard asked the boy

“Yeah I’m fine” said the lad shakily.

Eyeing the dead horse, which he assumed belonged to the boy, Richard came to a decision. 

“I guess you better come with me” He said, knowing the nearest village was miles away.

“Okay” said the boy. Gratefully, but still shaky.

“What's your name?” queried Richard  
“Drake. Timothy Drake”


	2. bound

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay in posting this. I haven't found the time (read:motivation) to write all that much recently. Again, please share your thoughts, they are of great value to me. \o/

The nearest town was Star City, located about fifty miles to the east. Richard figured the easiest thing to do was ride there and drop Timothy off. But he should probably try to learn a little about what this kid was doing on the open road by himself. 

“So, Timothy, why do you ride by yourself?” Said Richard as the too continued onward.

Timothy meekly shrunk back in his saddle. “Well, I lived alone with my father. He was always busy with work and never minded me much. I guess that life held no appeal to me. I decided to go out by my lonesome and live the life of adventure”

A small smile came to Richard’s face, but he said nothing as Timothy continued his narrative.

“I had heard rumors around the town of a fierce warrior who protected Gotham, one dressed as a bat. I thought I could maybe catch a glimpse of him” said Timothy. “So I took a horse and some supplies and started off towards Gotham”

Richard grunted in reply, not overly pleased by the boy's fanatical view of his former mentor.

“What about you?” said Timothy “Why do you ride so?”

Richard didn’t much feel explaining it all to Timothy right now, so he again replied with a monosyllabic grunt. Oh god, I am turning into Bruce. 

Timothy seemed to be recovering for his earlier timidity, and his face lit up as he rambled on about the fabled “Batman”

They rode on for many miles. Richard could not help but see glimpses of himself in the boy’s inane chatter. By nightfall, Richard had decided they should stop for the night and finish the journey tomorrow. 

They built a fire, or rather, Timothy watched Richard steadily coax a blaze from some dry sticks. They ate in silence for some time, then sat in silence until Timothy started to doze off. Once Richard Saw the boy was asleep, he quietly got up and walked away, his feet barely audible. The cool night felt good against his face. Spying a large oak with many branches, he walked toward it. Reaching the trunk, he seamlessly swung up into the tree. Perched on a branch, he slowly spread out, relaxing his body. He liked Timothy, even if he wasn’t inclined to show it. 

Still, tomorrow he’ll safely deliver Timothy to Star City, and he would be upon the open road, alone again. As he gazed off into the night, he felt a tiredness upon him, and slowly reclined onto the large branch atop which he sat. He closed his eyes, and let sleep descend.

He awoke to Timothy calling his name. He quickly sat up and saw Timothy on the ground below him. He slipped down out of the tree landing softly upon the leaf covered forest floor.

“Richard! I woke up and you were gone” said Tim.

“Seems like you found me well enough” replied Richard

“Well, I saw that the leaves had been displaced in a trail, so I followed it until I reached this tree.” 

Good Instincts. Thought Richard to himself. 

Trudging back to their campsite, Richard smirked to himself. Bruce would love this kid. If Bruce were capable of expressing love. 

Motioning to Timothy, the two remounted their horses and took to the road again.  
\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

In a few hours, they could see the towers of Star city upon the horizon. 

“Well Timothy, It’s been nice. You can get back to your home well enough from here” 

Timothy shifted uncomfortably in his saddle, looking like he had something to say. He remained silent for several long minutes. The smirk which Richard wore so often in Timothy’s presence reappeared. 

“Well, um, I was wondering if…” Timothy began. Richard continued to smirk.

“If I could continue going on with you” Timothy quickly spit out.

Richard sat silently in his saddle for a moment. He half expected Timothy to say something along those lines. After all, the boy did not seem very enthusiastic about his previous life. 

“I would like that Timothy,” said Richard with a warm smile.

He saw Timothy visibly relax at his words. The poor kid thought he was going to rebuff him.

“Hey, Can I call you Tim?” asked Richard. 

Tim smiled and nodded. With matching smiles they continued on, soon reaching the gates of the city. They quickly decided they would stay here for the night and discuss future plans. Richard led Tim through the city eventually stopping at a medium sized inn. A sign above the door proclaimed it to be “The Green Dragon Inn”. 

They strode through the door, and Richard warmly greeted a clerk, and went on inquiring about a meal and a two beds for the night. As Richard talked to the clerk, Timothy looked around the Inn. It appeared to be a very respectable joint, but had a cozy air to it. 

They bought a room for that night, and were informed that dinner would be served at seven that night. It was presently a little past midday. 

“Well Tim, I am going to go meet a friend. Why don’t you explore the town a little bit, and get some lunch. You have money, right?” said Richard.

At Tim’s affirmative reply, Richard nodded, then strode out the door. 

“I’ll meet you back here at 7 for dinner!” he called over his shoulder.


	3. The Lyon and Sprite Tavern

Chapter 3

After Richard left, Tim stood in the tavern, a little taken aback at his companions abruptness. He politely thanked the innkeeper, and, as per Richard’s suggestion set off to explore the town, and hopefully encounter lunch. Star city was very large and very old. The streets were thin and winding, crisscrossed by side streets and back alleyways. For a non-local it could prove easy to get lost, but with his near perfect memory, Timothy was not worried about losing his way. 

With no clear purpose in mind, he began to meander down the cobbled streets. As he walked he flicked his eyes back and forth observing minute details about those he passed. He saw people from all walks of life, dirty peasants to haggling merchants to haughty nobles. 

Star City was the largest city in the region, and it attracted many people from across the surrounding countryside. Tim felt a rumble in his stomach, jarring him back to his current position. 

He cast his gaze about, trying to find somewhere to eat that was respectable, but not above his currently modest means. His father was been quite wealthy, but Tim only had the little bit of money he had taken with him. 

As he wandered down the cobbled streets his eye was caught by what appeared to be a nice restaurant, and he made his way over to the door.

A swinging sign proclaimed it to be “The Lyon and Sprite tavern” Tim pushed open the door and was greeted by a cozy interior, which was fairly full. There were a number of tables spread out across the room, and a bar at the far end.He warily eyed the other patrons and made his way up to the bar. Picking a spot fairly far from the main crowd, he sat down and leaned back, flexing the muscles in his legs and stretching out his body. 

He politely ordered a modest meal consisting of potatoes and some sort of meat, probably chicken. As he began to eat, he strained his ears to see if he could catch snippets of other people's conversations. 

“Weather hasn’t been too good for the crops lately now has it…”

“ My chicken has stopped laying..”

“ Great deals, best in the city”

Most of the conversation was garden variety, but a few snippets surprised him. 

“ Then that smarmy green bastard shot an arrow at me and warned me not to poach..”

Tim chuckled to himself at that one, but was quickly interrupted by a burst of laughter from a table of semi-inebriated men. Turning his head, Tim looked behind him to see several burly gentlemen at a table, laughing uproariously. 

A blonde woman in a purple cloak attempted to get by their table, but failed to pass without capturing the attention of one of the larger men seated at the table. 

“Hey, sweet cheeks, what's the rush” he slurred as she continued to skirt past them.

“Sorry not interested” she said, before mumbling quietly to herself, “creep” 

“What did… What did you say” said the man in broken strands of words, anger growing in his voice. 

“I said, I am not interested, now PLEASE let me by”

His thick arm shot out in front of her, effectively blocking her path. 

However, she wasted no time in grabbing his wrist, and twisting his arm back to what was surely an uncomfortable angle. Crying out the man withdrew his arm, and a mere second later, the woman stormily surged forward. 

She made her way to the least crowded part of the room, and took a chair near the one which Tom was currently situated at. As she sat down, TIm caught his first real glimpse of her face, and found himself holding his breath. Blond curls framed a young but regal face, with a slightly colored face and sparkling eyes still ablaze for her encounter. 

“That was really cool” said Tim, hoping to engage the newcomer. He was entranced by her display of fire and beautiful countenance. 

“Oh, you saw that did you?” she said, a small smile tugging up the corners of her full lips. 

“Yeah, it was great.” Tim replied to which she raised a single eyebrow.

Tim spluttered and hastily said “I mean, it was terrible that it happened but kind of awesome? You're awesome” 

She smiled again, then stuck out her hand. Tim reached out and shook her hand firmly.

“I’m Stephanie” she said, a larger smile building across her features. Tim’s sputtering was amusing. And he was kind of cute.

“Timothy Drake. You can call me Tim.” 

“So Tim, you from around here?” Tim started telling her a fairly accurate account of his recent fortunes, and soon they were embroiled in what Tim considered to be a scintillating conversation. Later they had both finished their meals, and their full stomachs and the now cheery atmosphere of the room brought matching smiles to their faces. 

As they had talked Tim found himself more enraptured by this girl, and by the end of their conversation, he was considering asking her to dinner. 

“Well, this has been great, but I better be going” said Stephanie as she put some coins on the table.

“Wait! Um.. would you like to.. Um, come have dinner with me this evening? Tim hated how nervous he sounded. “I’m staying at the Green Dragon Inn, and dinner is served at Seven” 

Stephanie smiled again, and Tim weakly smiled in reply.

“Sounds great. Hey, can I bring a friend? She doesn’t get out much and I worry about her..


End file.
